GE signs three contracts for distributed power projects

By Febry Silaban

American engineering giant firm General Electric (GE) signed on Tuesday two Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs) and one contract for distributed power projects featuring the company?s gas engine technology, including the country?s first integrated biomass-to-power plants for on-grid applications using bamboo and woody biomass feedstock for supporting the need for distributed power in Indonesia.

The MOUs and contract are an MOU with PT Clean Power Indonesia (CPI) and state owned electricity firm PT PLN (Persero) for the development and deployment of its integrated biomass gasification power system; a contract for GE to provide four Waukesha 12V275GL+ gas engines and two Waukesha VGF48GL units to help upgrade the gas compression station facility owned by the state owned oil and gas PT Pertamina (Persero) in Lembak, Palembang, South Sumatra; and a MoU with PLN Enjiniring to develop an integrated virtual pipeline power generation pilot project in remote islands.

?With our Distributed Power business, GE has numerous technologies that can hasten the substitution of natural gas for diesel throughout the more than 17,000 islands of the Indonesia archipelago. Making the move to natural gas and biogas will be go beyond helping Indonesia improve its fiscal sustainability and energy security to reducing greenhouse gas emissions,? said CEO GE Indonesia, Handry Satriago, in ?GE Distributed Power Grand Launch?, in Jakarta, on Tuesday.

The launch event was attended by Vice Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Susilo Siswoutomo, Vice Chairman and President & CEO of GE Global Growth & Operations John G. Rice, and President & CEO of GE Power & Water-Distributed Power Lorraine Bolsinger.

GE said that its integrated biomass gassification solution featuring GE?s syngas engine technology will power biomass-to-power demonstration plants in Indonesia. The project involves the development of full-scale power facilities using GE?s integrated biomass-to-power solution as well as supporting industries critical to development of sustainable, local fuel sources.

Two plants will be built as part of the cooperation: a large scale 1-MW facility on Sumba island, and a demonstration plant in Bangli, Bali, producing greater than 150 kilowatts of electricity. The biomass gasification demo plants will use biomass from local, sustainable sources, such as bamboo and wood waste. These are the first bamboo and wood biomass gasification projects for on-grid applications in the country.

The project with Pertamina, in which GE will provide the Waukesha gas engines, will increase the gas transmission pressure to the customer?s liquid stripping plant and fertilizing plant. GE?s proven gas engine technology is well suited for Pertamina?s required compression application power requirements, fuel gas availability, emissions regulation requirements (400 mg/nm3 NO and 500 mg/nm3 CO) and continuous duty operation reliability needs. This is the first compression application of GE?s 12V275GL+ gas engines in Indonesia. The natural gas units will be installed beginning in March of this year, and commercial operation is expected in June 2014.

GE Oil & Gas and GE?s Distributed Power signed a MoU with PLN Enjiniring to jointly develop an integrated virtual pipeline power generation project in Indonesia. In the remote islands of Indonesia, where pipeline infrastructure is scarce, small, modular and flexible power solutions are important to producing fuel and energy for the country.

Pulling from GE Oil & Gas? Distributed Gas Solutions portfolio of small-scale, modular natural gas fueling systems combined with Distributed Power?s power generation gas turbine and engine technology, the initiative to offer a comprehensive marginal gas-to-power solution with PLN Enjiniring could minimize the need for a formal pipeline infrastructure on the islands, assist with peaking power demands and allow for diesel replacement and cost savings with natural gas power generation.

Through this structure, the availability of small volume gas can be compressed or liquefied, transported, stored and regassified at a distanced demand location, thereby creating a ?virtual? pipeline for power that could be modeled throughout the country.

Lorraine Bolsinger said that GE launched its new Distributed Power business to meet the world?s growing demand for on-site power systems that are easier to finance, faster to install and more efficient and reliable for customers than large-scale power projects. GE?s distributed power product portfolio includes Jenbacher and Waukesha gas engines, aeroderivative gas turbines and Clean Cycle waste heat recovery solutions with an output range of 100 kilowatts to 100 megawatts.

?We have allocated an investment in this newly created business of US$1.4 billion over four years to help meet the world?s growing demand for on-site power systems that are easier to finance, faster to install and more efficient and reliable for customers,? she said. Aside from the three contracts, GE also signed others agreements including:
? Two major Southeast Asia gas engine supply and service agreements with distributed power project developer Navigat Energy Pte Ltd to provide 100 new Jenbacher gas engines that will generate a total of 330 MW at a number of independent power production sites in Indonesia and Thailand.
? A separate 10-years material stream agreement under which Navigat will provide preventive maintenance on GE?s installed fleet of 100 J620 Jenbacher gas engines that are driving on-site power projects in Singapore, Indonesia, and Thailand.
? A MoU for GE to supply Navigat with two J920 FleXtra natural gas-fueled engines.
? An agreement between GE and Malaysian company Green & Smart Sdn Bhd, which entails providing a proven solution for waste-to-power using GNS?s patented technology in anaerobic digestors and GE?s Jenbacher gas engine technology to produce power and supply to the Malaysian electricity grid.

Editing by Johannes Simbolon